A rapid chromatographic method for determining the glucosinolate content in crambe seed

Crambe abyssinica is becoming a reliable source of industrial oil with good technical characteristics because of its high erucic acid content. The possibility of using the industrial defatted meal of crambe as a feed could further promote the interest in this crop, but is prevented by the high glucosinolate content (70-150 μmol/g). Therefore the possibility of reducing this parameter by selection was evaluated and a search for a new quick analytical procedure begun. When hydrolysed by myrosinase (thioglucoside glucohydrolase EC 3.2.3.1.), at pH 6.5 or higher, epi-progoitrin, the main glucosinolate in crambe seed ( > 90% of total glucosinolates), gives (5R)-5-vinyl-1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione quantitatively. The latter can be easily estimated by high-performance liquid chromatography. This is the background of the proposed analytical procedure that permits rapid analysis of about 100 samples per day using about 25 mg of crambe meal (five seeds) for assay. The method can also be used to select for glucosinolate content in rapeseed and, probably with some adjustment, all crops that have a 2-hydroxy-glucosinolate as the main glucosinolate.